


Puppies, Kittens and Not Nearly Enough Coffee

by BearWritesThings (Halaani)



Category: Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter/Funhaus RPF
Genre: Animal Traits, Animal Transformation, Baby Animals, Fluff, Gen, Puppy Mayhem
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-11-09
Updated: 2015-11-08
Packaged: 2018-04-30 18:30:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,278
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5174636
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Halaani/pseuds/BearWritesThings
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>So a few of them happen to transform into animals when they're tired or stressed. That's no big deal right? It is when your coworkers are clueless and you find your office suddenly full of puppies or your coworkers transform into a bunny and a kitten before your very eyes.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Puppies, Kittens and Not Nearly Enough Coffee

**Author's Note:**

> This one comes in two parts. The first part is funhaus, the second is rooster teeth.

People deal with stress in all kinds of ways. Some read, some nap, some drink tea and yet others exercise or talk it out with people they love. For Adam, Matt and about one hundred thousand other people the world over, they handled stress in a far different manner. 

Adam was ten when it happened for the first time. He'd been sick, he was behind at school and one his best friends wasn't talking to him for reasons unknown. For a child that age that had been an enormous amount of stress and he'd been startled to find himself pacing his room one second and then far closer to the ground the next. He'd screamed, the sound coming out as a high pitched wail instead, and his mom had come running. She'd stopped dead in his door and then sighed heavily, though her eyes held affection and love. She'd come over, scooped him up and took him to the bathroom and sat him in front of the mirror.

Shock and fear lanced through him when, instead of his reflection, there looked back at him the image of an orange tabby kitten. She'd taken him to the doctor, who'd explained that it was a rare condition tied to the stress response that nearly a hundred years of scientific study could not explain. He'd be fine once he was calm again and the transformations would only come when he reached a threshold of exhaustion, sickness or stress he couldn't handle himself. He found himself sent home with a packet of information, the number for a support group and an order for a medical charm that he wore about his neck, hidden by his t-shirts.

He told very few people outside of his home after that point. Only a few of his dearest friends so they wouldn't be alarmed if it happened around them. Eventually he got better too, as he got older and his ability to handle stress and know his limits got better, and the kitten transformations slowed until he could count the number on both hands with fingers left over each year. For the longest time he'd known only the members of his support group, a grand total of four other people, and a few friends he'd made over message boards who had the condition, and that suited him fine.

And then he met Matt Peake.

Matt was a quiet, calm and competent man that Adam found himself clicking with almost instantly. They shared a few interests and both were dedicated to their work at Inside Gaming. It wasn't uncommon for them both to stay behind after the others had left for a few hours, Adam going over the plan for content for the rest of the week and Matt editing videos and making thumbnails. From there they formed an easy report of coffee, takeout and bad jokes.

The day Matt came in, pink-cheeked and sniffly, Adam knew the man had a cold, but also knew he wasn't going to go home so Adam made the executive decision to make it a half day, since they were all a little tired and rung out. The others had left at noon and Adam had left briefly to grab something from the break room after making sure Matt was finishing up so he could leave with the rest of them. When he'd come back, he knew almost instantly that something was wrong. Matt's chair was still pulled in, his hoodie hanging off the back of it and his rig was still on, Premiere still open on the screen. But Matt was nowhere to be found, and his clothes were in a heap on the chair.

He crept forward, some inkling of familiarity and trepidation in him as he pulled back Matt;s chair, sucking in a breath when his gaze landed upon a small, fawn bunny rabbit, its nosed tucked into its front paws, ears twitching fretfully. "Aw hell." He whispered, but obviously not quiet enough as the bunny looked up at him with wide, dewy eyes, fear in them and he floundered away, falling gracelessly to the floor.

"Oh! Hey no Matt I'm sorry." He gasped, holding up his hands in a manner that he hoped was non-threatening. He'd been in this position before, would be in this position again, where he was so much smaller than everything around him and that made him more nervous than he would like to admit. He knelt down and gently removed the pendant around his neck, his cleverly disguised medical tag and gently nudged it towards the man-turned-bunny. The bunny hopped forward and papped the tag a few times before he bounced out of his hiding spot and up to Adam. Adam gingerly scooped Matt up when he reared up on his hind legs and bapped him impatiently. Once cradled he burrowed into Adam's arm, shaking minutely. "I should have sent you home before this, Matt." When he received no response other than the other man burrowing in further to his arms, Adam rose to his feet, turned off Matt's rig and draped his hoodie over his arms, providing the man with a warm darkness to rest in.

He spent the night nursing the man with small dishes of warm milk and bunny formula from the nearby pet store. It was an embarrassing fact that, in their...alternate forms as they were, the best medicines and foods were the ones meant for that form. In his house it was easy. The few times he was sick he'd been forced to suffer mainly because he couldn't medicate himself when he was six inches tall and weak as, well, as a newborn kitten, but at least he never ran out of food and water. He made a nest of thick blankets on the far edge of the bed and tucked the Matt bunny in before he fell asleep. In the morning when he woke Matt was there in his human form, curled in the blankets Adam had left him. Adam made the other man stay home for the day, calling every few hours to make sure the other man hadn't reverted forms again and after that it was their shared secret.

Matt came to Adam when he was feeling overwhelmed, the only real warning they ever got before their transformations, and Adam did the same. If they started carrying around pictures on their lock screens, a fawn bunny and orange kitten respectively, well, they weren't going to explain it to anyone. Of course, going home together several nights opened up a whole new can of worms in the form of their five coworkers. Most, if not all, were of the mind that Adam and Matt were at least sleeping together, if not outright dating and carrying on a relationship. For Matt and Adam it was simply easier to ignore them than to argue against the accusations, which of course to them only lent them credence. 

It wasn't until some years later and fully settled in as Funhaus instead of Inside Gaming, that everything came to light. It was a wild few weeks leading into RTX '15, their first big premiere as part of the Rooster Teeth family and Adam was running himself ragged making sure everything was ready and good, ignoring his brain shouting at him to slow down, all of his previous experience thrown to the wind in the face of all the work that needed to be done. Likewise, Matt was running himself to the edge of his own endurance, splitting his time between footage and trying to reign in Adam. If, by the time the convention rolled around they were running on cat naps, energy drinks and coffee well they weren't going to say anything, since the others were already plenty busy and didn't have time to worry about them. And afterwards there was no break, straight back into content, though their amount of sleep went back up and they started eating full meals again.

A week after their return, Matt and Adam stayed late to work on another load of footage before they went home, though this time Bruce insisted on staying with them to ease the load.. There was really no indication for it, just one second Adam was sitting at his desk, listlessly paging through one of the project files and then he was much smaller, staring angrily at his rig. Of course. Of-fucking-course! He yowled his anger to the sky and hopped down from his chair, ignoring the achy soreness of his limbs and padded over to Matt's desk. Sure enough there was a pile of clothes and a little bunny hopped out towards him, looking just as disgruntled as he did. Above them, Bruce towered, looking startled and Adam turned towards him. caterwauling as loud as his little body could to get the man's attention.

Bruce jumped to, stuttering over his words and Adam rolled his eyes internally. He was tired, and sore and hungry and he felt stupid for ignoring the needs of his body for so long. Fed up with Bruce's useless floundering he walked over and swiped his clawed paw out, scraping against the skin below the hem of his shorts. His kitten claws were just strong enough to bring a sting and a few raised welts and Bruce stopped, crouching down in front of them. Matt had brought over his own tag, having gone through the trouble of dragging it with his tiny body and Bruce grabbed it in hand, broad fingers holding the little octagon pendant gingerly. "Both of you?" He whispered and Adam mewed, coming over to pap Bruce on the chin. "I don't- I don't know what to do." He whispered and Adam sighed, an odd sound from his furry form, and simply licked Bruce's nose and wandered over to his clothes. 

With some doing he managed to get his phone out of his pocket and dragged it over to Bruce. He'd long gotten used to using his phone in this form,a sheer necessity and much easier for him considering Matt's paws were far fluffier and it made hitting buttons nearly impossible. With a little work, and to his amusement Bruce's further surprise, he opened his contacts and scrolled to Geoff's number before he nosed it over to Bruce. Tired, his work done for now, he padded over to Matt and both hunkered down together, sharing warmth, sleep already heavy in their bones. He could fuzzily hear Bruce's voice as he talked to Geoff, and some time later Adam woke briefly when they were lifted into the air, one of Matt's hoodies draped over them and taken to the car. Adam untangled himself from the hoodie and climbed onto the dashboard, his small body wedging in the space with little difficulty to watch the road pass them by. 

"Are you sure you don't want to sleep a little more?" Adam turned towards him with a blank look and Bruce chuckled softly, holding up his arms slightly above the wheel to show he was sorry. Adam spent his time between watching over Matt's slumbering form and tracking their progress to, he figured, his own home, since Geoff would have told him that everything they needed would likely be there. Sure enough, twenty minutes after leaving the office they pulled into Adam's place. And sure enough, there were an array of other cars there, the others milling around outside and looking nervous. Of course everyone would find out in one go. Annoyance surged through him, at odds with his exhaustion. He'd never really wanted anyone besides Matt and his family to know. It lead to them being overprotective and Adam feeling stifled. It'd taken his family years to figure that out, and Matt knew from experience. Now they'd have to contend with his friends as well. 

Miffed, he bypassed Bruce entirely, stalking along the concrete to his door, where he stood and meowed imperiously until Bruce, carrying Bunny-Matt, came up and unlocked the door. Once they were all inside Adam gripped Lawrence's shoe and tugged impatiently, frustrated that because he was so small he had to throw his whole body into it. Luckily, Lawrence seemed to get his drift fairly quickly and he followed Adam into the kitchen. The kitten walked over to one of the counters, crouched down and wiggled before he launched himself up, a great effort for him. He skid along the granite before he righted himself and walked over to a counter, batting at it until Lawrence opened it. Inside were two shelves, neatly labeled. One had "Matt" written in green on a strip of tape, the other had "Adam" written in blue on the same, each shelf full of bunny and kitten appropriate treats, medicines and other such things, like food and toys.

Satisfied that they knew where the supplies were now he hopped down and trotted into the living room where Matt had been set on the couch, the others hovering over him. He pushed his way through the forest of legs and hopped onto the couch, tugging at Matt's ear in that gentle affectionate way that was normal for them and Matt rose to his feet. Bunny and kitten alike jumped to the ground amidst protest and, fed up and tired Adam whirled around with a growl, swiping with surprising ferocity. The others jumped back, immediately afraid they'd step on one of the animals and Adam subsided when Matt patted him on the haunch. They turned and headed away from the group, making their way slowly but surely, mainly because their legs were so small, up the stairs and into Adam's bedroom, where his cats were already sleeping. Used to the two small animals already in their home, they made no fuss when Matt and Adam burrowed under Adam's comforter and curled together like one bug furry lump, Adam's soft purr filling the room as Matt's head rested under his chin.

Over the next while, Adam had no way of tracking the time, they mainly slept, though Spoole brought up food and water at some point and, once the room was clear they snuck out to eat the offering of organic rabbit pellets for Matt and a pouch's worth of tender fillets for Adam, with milk for both. Once the dishes were empty they returned to the blanket cave, curled around each other again and fell back to sleeping peacefully.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Adam groaned as he woke, stretching his limbs languorously as he lay there. Matt was gone presumably downstairs getting food or in the bathroom, as he knew by now that he of course had free run of Adam's place when he was there and he rolled out of bed. Slowly he climbed into boxers and lounge pants, the clock telling him it was later in the afternoon of what he was assuming the following day, and slipped on a t-shirt. There was some...transference, he guessed the word was, between their two forms, and his light footedness allowed him to hear the conversation from the top of the stairs. It was Matt, clutching a cup of coffee and bundled on the couch in one of Adam's fleeces, talking to the others.

"Guys, he's not mad. I promise." Cocking his head he leaned over a little bit to get a better ear on the conversation. Matt, sensing the others didn't quite believe him continued on. "He just gets feisty when he doesn't feel well and we always feel on edge when we're in that form. You gotta understand, we're really small, we're essentially baby animals with human brains at that point. And Adam can defend himself a little, but I can't and he knows that, so he's...protective." He sipped his coffee. "It's not something we're really comfortable talking about, and it's not something we can control so add on that all of you discovered at once and he was just off center."

Adam had heard enough and he padded down the stairs, making sure to make noise so they could hear his approach. They greeted him warmly enough and Adam meandered over to where Matt was sitting, stretching himself out along the length of the couch like fat cat in a sun beam, butting into Matt's hand when the smaller man's hand came to scratch along his beard.

"You guys have been doing this for each other for a while, haven't you?" Joel's soft voice brought them out of their little reverie and Adam turned towards the other man, locking eyes with him. There was only genuine concern there and Adam felt any doubt leave him when he found the look echoed by everyone around him. He nodded, settling back into Matt's lap, contentedly.

"We have. There's not a lot of us that have this...condition so when we find each other we stick together. Imagine my surprise when I found someone, not just in the same building as me but in the same office, who had to go through what I did. We've known about each other for nearly seven years now, and really, we're all we've got when it comes to this." He trailed off a little because it was true. Their families loved them but they were adults now and they couldn't rely on their parents and siblings and other family members. But it was so hard to open up to others when, every now and then you became six inches tall and quite defenseless. So he and Matt leaned on each other, trusting the other to take care of them and to understand the tics and turns that came with it. Like how Adam knew Matt hated having his hands and feet touched if he didn't need to, squeaked and wiggled when he was happy- despite how embarrassing that could be- and how he pretended to hate when Adam brought him carrots but secretly snacked on them later. And of course Matt knew that Adam had a mean craving for sushi almost always, liked having his chin scratched and could actually purr even in human form and it was something Matt strived to hear because it meant the man was truly happy in that moment.

The others were silent for a little bit before they voiced their acceptance and Bruce apologized for alerting the others without their permission. Adam and Matt shrugged and forgave him and Matt went back to lazily scratching Adam under the chin, grinning wide when he went limp, a purr thrumming in his chest. The others were surprised at the sound and Matt simply rolled his eyes. It was just one of the things that they'd have to get used to now.

In the end, Bruce ordered them to take the following day off and someone was going to stay with them to make sure they were alright. They both protested nominally but they were talked down and given a project. The next day, grumbling good-naturedly as they camped on Adam's couched, they worked together on a "Care and Feeding of your Animal Coworkers" booklet, which Lawrence printed off several copies of and each had a copy in them, a spare copy holding a place of importance on Matt's desk, since it was the neater of the two between he and Adam. It was a few months before they quashed the overprotective urges that swamped them and instead they went with the honey instead of vinegar route, coaxing them into breaks and early nights instead of ordering them, and all was happy in the Funhaus offices again.

Except, James kept hiding catnip toys in Adam's desk. He was getting really sick of the catnip toys.


End file.
